


True Love Conquers All

by GummiMoose



Category: Naruto
Genre: Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, F/M, Reader-Insert, Slow Burn, Slow To Update, i refuse to accept sasusaku as canon, their kid's name is lettuce for christ's sake, what am I doing with my life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-04
Updated: 2016-02-19
Packaged: 2018-05-11 16:45:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5633875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GummiMoose/pseuds/GummiMoose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He denies his interest. You weren't part of his plan for avenging his family. But you showed up regardless and stole his heart. How will he deal with the struggle between his love for you and his need for revenge? Where will you fit in?</p><p>Dedicated to my best friend (you know who you are), who's bugged me for years to continue this. Love you :3</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys! This is my first Naruto fic, so I'm sort of new to this group of people here on AO3! I've decided to take a break from the normal stuff I write to work on this! Its actually been rolling around in my head since middle school, so you're looking at a story that's about 7 years in the making!
> 
> So fair warning, the plot loosely follows the episodes in the anime (I watched more than I read), but there will be a fair amount of time skips, so if you get confused, let me know and I will go back and edit to clarify. This is all just a collection of little scenes that fit together loosely into a story.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! Constructive criticism is much appreciated!

He was exhausted. Not that he ever showed it, though.

 

He hadn’t slept in three days. And it was starting to catch up to him. The five-hour training session with his team surely hadn’t helped any, either.

 

He was just so damned frustrated. He’d given up his tossing and turning in bed and instead used his nights to train alone. It was a good way of letting his irritation out, too, but he mostly used this training to keep you off of his mind. Not that he could all the time, seeing as though you were in the team with him.

 

He watched your bright red head bobbing away. A twinge deep in the pit of his stomach told him to follow you. But he didn’t.

 

_What the hell is wrong with me?_ He thought. But he couldn’t help scan your figure as you walked away.

 

Tall and thin. Milky white skin with long, red hair that matched the personality that you hid from the world. Just his type.

 

_Stop._

 

_What are you doing, pining over a girl? This isn’t what you need. You have more important things to be worrying about than her. Pull yourself together._

 

“Hmph,” he spoke lightly, and began his trek home. But he knew deep down, no matter how hard he tried to ignore it, he had already fallen for you.

 

-

 

You walked home by yourself, away from _him,_ taking each step slowly to enjoy the quiet sunset and have a good think about you situation.

 

You were nervous, and it scared you. You’d been here countless of times. Falling for a guy, working up the nerve… and facing complete rejection. Each time felt like the first: the hot wave of humiliation rolling over you, only to be replaced by raw emotion as soon as you were safe inside your room. You couldn’t, _wouldn’t_ let this happen again. You don’t think you could handle it this time. Tears welled in your eyes and you picked up the pace. You shook your head, shoving the memories as far back into your mind as you could. This was a new village, a new you.

 

But, unthankfully, it came with a new infatuation. You sighed, closing your eyes.

 

“God, _please_ don’t let me go through his again. I really can’t.”

 

But you knew begging was of no use.


	2. Chapter 1

You woke up the next morning sore, and barely managed to drag yourself out of bed. You had absolutely no desire to leave the safe comfort of your new apartment. No one liked you here. You were different, a newcomer. And Konoha was far less accepting than you had hoped. Especially your team. It was so obvious. Who would want to hang out with a foreigner like you? Hailing from a mysterious land miles across the sea that no one’s ever heard of didn’t exactly give you an image of someone to be immediately trusted.

 

_Its not all their fault, I guess._ You thought, _Its not like I’m the most gregarious person._ A smart-assed loner like you had always had trouble making friends. It never bothered you, though. You preferred a solitary life.

 

After quickly running a comb through your hair and brushing your teeth, you dug around through some of the boxes scattering your small apartment for some clean clothes. You cursed your lack of motivation to unpack, but as soon as you found what you were looking for, those frustrations were lost on you again. You may have been living there a month, but the unpacking could wait for another day. You had somewhere to be. You slipped on your black shorts and grey cropped t-shirt. Topping the outfit off with your headband and sandals, you patted yourself of the back for finishing your morning routine in record time. With only a book and a small lunch packed, you left the sweet sanctuary of your home to meet up with the rest of your team at the academy.

 

-

 

Sasuke was the first to arrive.

 

_Thank you,_ he thought, _I can enjoy some peace before-_

 

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Preparing for either a loud-mouth blonde or a pink-haired cling-on, he was pleasantly surprised to see you. When you looked up at him his heart skipped a beat.

 

“Oh, hey, Sasuke.”

 

“Hmph,” he nodded at you.

 

“Didn’t expect to see you here so early, given that Kakashi-sensei’s always so late.” You sat down a few seats away, a comfortable distance.

 

“Likewise.” You pulled out your little novel and ended the conversation, opting to escape behind the ink-covered pages. He contemplated asking you about it when the door burst open, causing the two of you to jump. In walked Sakura, dragging Naruto by the ear.

 

“Sakuraaaa, ow! Why do we have to be here so early?” Needless to say, you and Sasuke were quite unhappy with your loud partners for disrupting your peace.

 

“Because I said so! Now quit your whining!”

 

_God, here comes the headache,_ Sasuke thought to himself. Noticing his presence, Sakura made a beeline for him, leaving Naruto on the floor, nursing his sore earlobe. You watched the exchange from behind your book.

 

“Good morning, Sasuke! How are you?”

 

He didn’t respond. After a few moments, she kept talking, as if he had.

 

“So, uh… Sasuke, I’ve been meaning to ask you- ”

 

“No.”

 

“But I haven’t even-”

 

“Whatever it is you’re going to ask me, the answer is no.” You snorted. You’d hoped no one had noticed, but unfortunately, Sakura had. She spun around on her heel to face you and Naruto.

 

“Which one of you did that?” You raised your hand without hesitation, a shit-eating grin creeping onto your face.

 

“Sorry, I couldn’t help it. I just found it funny.”

 

“And why, pray tell, was is so funny?” You burst into laughter. This only intensified her glare.

 

“Because…” you squeezed in between giggles, “You’re just like all the others”.

 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Your laughter finally died down, save a few giggles.

 

“You’re just so _dense,_ ” you snickered, “And unrelenting”.

 

Sasuke smirked, a little impressed. Naruto just stared. You took notice, turning to him.

 

“What, do I have something on my face?” He jumped a little.

 

“N-no, this is just the first time I’ve heard you speak…”

 

“Well maybe that’s because no one’s made a single attempt to talk to me.”

 

“Maybe that’s because you’re a total weirdo,” Sakura said under her breath.

 

“Look who’s talking, Miss Obsessed. Why don’t you go cry to the shrine in your closet? You’d be of more use there.”

 

She was about to retort when a certain silver-haired jonin decided to make an appearance, poofing into existence in the middle of the room.

 

“Sorry I’m late, guys, I had, uh… prior arrangements” he chuckled.

 

“Oh, come on, Kakashi, we all know the only arrangements you have are with those pervy books you read,” Naruto fussed.

 

“Still… I’m sorry.” You had a feeling he wasn’t.

 

“So why did you have us meet here instead of the training grounds today?” questioned Sakura.

 

“Well, you guys won’t actually be training today, per say.” You raised an eyebrow, lowering your novel to listen more intently. “I’ve noticed that this team doesn’t seem to have as close of a relationship as I’d like to see, so I don’t think training each other would be very beneficial.”

 

“Okay… So what are we going to be doing today?” she asked, voicing everyone’s curiosity at that point.

 

“I want you guys to simply spend the day together. Get to know each other a little bit more.” Immediately the atmosphere in the room changed. It seemed as though everyone was repelled from each other by an unknown force. You finally spoke up.

 

“ _Seriously?_ ”

 

“Yes, ___, seriously.”

 

“But I don’t want to spend the day with _her!_ ” Sakura practically shrieked.

 

“Same goes here. It feels like my IQ drops whenever I’m within ten feet of her,” you countered without missing a beat. She growled.

 

“See? This is exactly what I’m talking about. You need to learn how to get along. So with that said, go enjoy yourselves today. And don’t even try skipping out. I’ll be watching.” Without another word, Kakashi vanished in a puff of smoke. You sighed, accepting your fate.

 

This was going to be a long day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the first chapter! Hopefully I'll be able to post the second one tomorrow!  
> Also, if you'd like, you can follow me on tumblr at the username GummiMoose!   
> Bye for now, ya'll!


	3. Chapter 2

You lagged behind the rest of the group as you made your way into the busier part of the village. Looking around, you realized that you hadn’t really had the chance to explore it in the short time that you had lived there.

 

The small streets were packed with shops and carts, and filled with bustling people. You observed quietly, watching the villagers hustle and bustle through their lives. You enjoyed the opportunity for a glance into others’ busy little worlds. It was so interesting seeing them so wrapped up in their own lives. It was a constant reminder not to get so wrapped up in yourself; you weren’t the only person in the world with problems and priorities. Everyone here was coexisting, their own individual stories intertwining and intermingling to form a larger picture. Your train of thought was interrupted when Naruto hung back to walk alongside you. When you noticed his presence, you looked ahead to see why.

 

Sakura clung to Sasuke’s arm like a leech, much to his obvious discomfort. He didn’t bother to push her off. You felt bad for him.

 

“Gosh, Sakura can be so clingy sometimes. I mean, what does she see in him?” Naruto sighed, hands behind his head.

 

“No idea,” you muttered, still watching the two. You didn’t let on that you had similar feelings. Finding any sort of similarity to her made you feel sick.

 

“Humph… Hey, do you like ramen?”

 

“Just as much as anyone else, why?”

 

“Well I know this awesome ramen shop not too far from here, Ichiraku’s. Been going there everyday for as long as I can remember. You hungry?”

 

“Sure, I guess. Shouldn’t we ask the other two though?” nodding at Sasuke and Sakura, who had stopped a few feet ahead. She was looking at some flowers, a death grip still on his arm.

 

“Yeah!” He bolted forward, meeting up with them. “Hey guys! ___ and I want to go to Ichiraku’s! You up for it?”

 

Sakura’s expression shifted to something between anger and annoyance. She glanced over at you, still taking your time catching up to them. You made eye contact. Her expression hardened.

 

“Fine, I guess. What do you think, Sasuke?” His gaze shifted towards you, who’d finally caught up. You sensed a hint of curiosity in his eyes. You raised an eyebrow.

 

“Hmph, whatever.”

 

“Alright, its settled! TO ICHIRAKU’S!!” Naruto yelled, raising a fist to the air. _This better be good,_ you thought.

 

-

 

The trek there was quiet; a little more fast-paced than you would have liked, given the fact that Naruto was excitedly running ahead of everyone else. You kept up with Sasuke and Sakura this time; matching their strides. Once you smelled the ramen, however, your growling stomach broke the silence between you.

 

“Hungry much?” Sakura snipped.

 

“Yeah, I am. Is that a problem?” She didn’t respond. You still didn’t understand why she tried so desperately to push your buttons. Whatever her reasoning, you wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of getting agitated.

 

You all took your seats at the counter and placed your orders. Naruto made idle chat with you (though you barely had any chance to respond because he was talking so much, but you didn’t mind) until your food came. The first bite of your pork ramen was so delicious it had you feeling like you had transcended into another realm. You had slurped down the rest of your bowl within ten minutes.

 

“Damn, Naruto, color me impressed. That was amazing!”

 

“Hehehe, don’t thank me, thank Teuchi! He’s got the talent!”

 

“Ah, Naruto, no need for flattery,” he chuckled, then turned to you, “So I guess I’ll be seeing you more often?”

 

“Definitely!” You chatted some more with Naruto and Teuchi until your other partners finished their bowls. Bidding the kind owner a farewell, your group left the tiny restaurant in search of something else to do.

 

-

 

You really were beautiful. And God, was he getting jealous.

 

He couldn’t help it anymore. Watching Naruto ease you out of your shell had his blood boiling. The pink figure no longer seemed like a bother as he watched the two of you walk ahead, idly chatting about the shops and the people. It was when you started giggling that he finally lost his nerve.

 

Shaking off Sakura, he stomped up to your other side, growling out his words.

 

“Are we actually going to do something, or are we just going to walk around all day?”

 

Naruto looked confused at his sudden outburst. “Well I was just hoping we’d walk around until we found something…” You raised brow, eyeing the dark boy curiously.

 

“Naruto, you go on ahead and look for something to do,” you said, not breaking the eye contact you had formed with Sasuke.

 

“Uh… I mean if you’re sure…” He turned to Sakura, who was glaring at you. “Hey, Sakura! Let’s go!” Grabbing her arm, he drug her ahead with him, much to her frustration. You ignored her. You had more important things to focus your attention on.

 

Once the two were out of hearing range, you spoke.

 

“So what crawled up your ass and died?” you asked, crossing your arms.

 

“Tch, honestly I was getting fed up with her hanging all over my arm.”

 

You chortled. “Can’t say I don’t blame you.”

 

He humphed in reply, shoving his hands in his pockets.

 

You continued walking together, a comfortable silence falling between the two of you. You didn’t let it last very long, however.

 

“So do you think they’ll find anything worthwhile?”

 

He smirked. “I doubt it. There’s not really anything to do around here.”

 

“Well what do you do in your free time, then?” You were genuinely curious.

 

“Train, mostly. Like I said, not much to do around here.”

 

You hummed in response, another silent moment falling upon you again. You weren’t expecting the conversation to continue.

 

“… What about you? What do you do?” You thought about it for a moment before answering.

 

“Hmm… Same, I guess. Train. Unpack, too.” You rubbed the back of your head sheepishly, “I keep putting it off, though, so I’ve still got a lot left.”

 

He nodded, hesitating with his actual response.

 

“I… could help you out, if you want. With the unpacking, I mean.” You looked up at him then, surprised at the offer. He kept his face to the ground.

 

“Uh… sure. If you really want to.”

 

“To be honest, you’re the most interesting person I’ve met in a while,” he said, looking up to meet your gaze, a smirk gracing his features.

 

You tried not to let the heat creep up to your cheeks. You smiled back.

 

“You’re not too bad yourself.”

 

-

 

The day continued on without anything else interesting happening. As Sasuke predicted, you continued to walk around the village, never finding anything else to do. As the sun began to set, you all agreed to part ways.

 

“Bye, ____! You know, I’ve got to say, you’re pretty cool!” Naruto exclaimed.

 

“You’re pretty cool too, Naruto,” you giggled.

 

“Bye Sakura!”

 

“Yeah, yeah, bye Naruto.” And with that, he ran off. No doubt to Ichiraku’s for another bowl of ramen before heading home.

 

“Bye, Sasuke! I hope you have a wonderful night! Don’t miss me too much!”

 

“Tch, you don’t have to worry about that.” Sakura turned to you, a glare already on her face. She said nothing to you, just simply turned on her heel and walked off. You smiled, relieved you didn’t have to waste any energy crafting a smart response to any snippy comment. You looked over to Sasuke, still standing beside you. A small twist of anxiety curled in your stomach.

 

“Guess I’ll see you around.”

 

“Yep.”

 

“I’m going to hold you to that offer.”

 

“That’s why I made it.” You blushed. What was he doing to you?

 

“Any preferences for days, then?”

 

“Whenever, I guess.”

 

“How about tomorrow? Or the day after?”

 

“Tomorrow’s good.”

 

“Cool. See you tomorrow, then.”

 

“Cool.”

 

You started walking away, but stopped, a smile creeping onto your face.

 

“Hey Sasuke.”

 

“Hm?”

 

“ _Don’t miss me too much,”_ you squeaked out, making your imitation of Sakura especially horrific. He let out a chuckle.

 

“See you tomorrow, ___.” And with that he was gone. You started your walk home, happy with how your day turned out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another one down. I'm super excited to finally get this ball rolling :)


	4. Chapter 3

You woke up the next morning feeling refreshed. Knowing it was your day off, and knowing you had a visitor coming over later was enough to make you jump out of bed as soon as you were awake. 

Rushing through your usual morning routine, you gave yourself time to tidy up some of your messes so that your apartment didn’t look like any more of a disaster than it already was.

To be perfectly honest, you didn’t have a lot, but even just a few boxes filled up the entire living space easily.

Your studio apartment was just big enough to house your basic necessities: a queen sized bed, smushed into the northwest corner of the room, with a matching nightstand crammed in between the open side and the door to your small bathroom; a wardrobe closet pushed up against the wall a few feet from the foot of the bed; and a small dining table with two chairs pushed against the half-wall that separated the kitchen area from the rest of the space. The room still felt sterile and unlived in, but you hoped that after unpacking, it would feel more like home.

It was around 12:30 when you heard a knock at your door.

You would have been lying if you said your heart hadn't skipped a beat. You had been genuinely excited to get to know the mysterious boy a little better. And you may have been a little curious as to why he had been so forward with you about coming over the day before. Plus, he was hot. Like, really hot. Wherever the nerves came from, you took a moment to shake them out before opening the door.

There he was, standing calmly with his hands in his pockets. You really didn’t know what you were expecting; he looked the same as always. Still, you were excited to see him there.

“Hey.”

“Hey yourself. Come on in,” you said, stepping aside to let him in. He removed his sandals and placed them by the door, looking around at your small space.

“I would say ‘Welcome to my humble abode’ but ‘humble’ seems a little too much of an understatement…” you sighed, closing the door.

“Hmph. Not like you’d need anything bigger. Its just you living here.”

“You’re right. I guess it’ll feel a little bit bigger once everything’s put away.”

A heavy silence hung between the two of you in the next passing moments, both of you unsure of what to say in fear of stepping over some line neither of you were sure was there. You could have described it as awkward, but the term didn’t feel quite appropriate. Luckily, you didn’t have to say anything, as he broke the God-awful silence.

“So where should we start?” Ah, yes. That’s the whole reason he’s here. To help you unpack. You were so lost in trying to figure out what to say that you had forgotten why he was there in the first place.

“Uh… pick a box, I guess. I don’t really have a designated place for anything yet, so just put stuff where you think it should go.”

He hummed in response, opening the box directly in front of him. You quickly picked one as well, and so began the process of unpacking. You focused on organizing your books and scrolls onto a bookshelf, preferring to keep your back turned to him to hide your nervousness. You knew the silence wouldn’t last forever, though, and you were glad he wasn’t making things awkward.

“So where are you from, originally?” Keeping things casual, you mentally thanked him for having the balls you seemed to be severely lacking in that moment.

“Um, _____, actually. Its pretty far away. Oversees. Took about a month and a half to travel here by boat. Left behind my family to be here.”

“You keep in contact with them though?”

“Unfortunately, no. Its too large of a distance to keep in any sort of contact.” It had been an incredibly difficult decision for you to make, and was still a touchy subject.

"What the hell convinced you to do that?" You flinched at his harsh words. You understood where this was coming from, though. He didn’t have the choice to never see his family again. It was simply taken away from him in the blink of an eye. You took a moment to compose yourself before answering.

“I know it sounds dumb, but… I’ve wanted to be a shinobi my entire life. My family’s from a farming village, and where I’m from there’s no one to train people to become ninja. So when I started showing more adept skills with my chakra, I made the decision to travel here and hone those skills.”

“How did you family take it?”

“They understood. I mean, who wouldn’t want their child to become successful? It wasn’t an easy decision, though. My mom took it the worst. We were really close. She was my best friend. But ultimately, she was the one who pushed me into leaving. She told me that she wouldn’t have been able to live with herself if she was the reason I never lived up to my potential.”

“Sounds like she really cares about you.”

“Yeah. I miss her every day.” There was a silence after that. You knew what he had gone through with his family after overhearing a conversation between some women in the village. You didn’t feel right asking about it, seeing a though he didn’t know you knew. You heard his shuffling continue behind you, and you followed suit, methodically placing all of your books on the shelves in silence. When you had finished, you turned to see that he had already unpacked three boxes.

“Slow down, you’re making me look lazy,” you chuckled.

“Its not my fault you wanted to sit around and shuffle books for an eternity.”

“Shut up,” you said, standing up to collect the empty boxes, “Detailed organization is very important.”

He scoffed. “Whatever you say.”

“I’ll be back. Gonna go toss these in the dumpster.”

He hummed in response.

-  


When the door had finally closed, Sasuke let out a sigh, leaning back onto his hands.

This spur of the moment decision he had made the night before was turning out to be something he might regret later. He’d never say it out loud, but he was starting to really like her. But at the same time, he knew he shouldn’t be giving into these feelings. He needed to stay focused on getting stronger and finding his brother. But she woke something up in him. Something he hadn’t felt in a long time. Happiness? Ease of mind? Whatever it was, he didn’t like it. He needed to put an end to this before it got out of hand.

At that moment, the door opened, and you walked in, sifting through the mass of envelopes and papers in your hands. You kicked the door closed behind you and walked over to the table, choosing to sit on it instead of the empty chair next to it. 

“Jeez, I didn’t think I’d have this much mail. I’ve only been here a month.”

“You haven’t checked your mail yet?”

“Not for a few weeks, no.”

“Smart.”

“Shut up—oh, hey,” you said, pausing at a slip of paper in particular. “I didn’t know Konoha held a spring festival year.”

“Yeah, they make a huge deal out of it. Carnival games, food stands… Really annoying, if you ask me.”

“Aw, it can’t be that bad. You’re just a party pooper.”

“Humph.”

“C’mon, we should go. It’ll be a lot of fun.”

For whatever reason, he couldn’t help himself. He sighed.

“Yeah, whatever. It’s gonna be lame though.”

You giggled. “It won’t be too lame with you there.” Realizing what you had said, you turned away from his gaze, hiding the blush that had spread across your cheeks. You didn’t notice the similar redness that graced his face as well.

“Humph. Whatever.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... Yeah. It's been a while. Life's been busy. 18 credit hours is no joke, people. And my Writing class is sucking the soul out of me. Well, so are all my other classes, but that's besides the point.
> 
> I hope ya'll enjoyed this. It was a bitch to write, let me tell you. Serious writer's block every paragraph or so. But hopefully next chapter will be easier to write and will come out much faster than this one lol.


End file.
